Asia Cup: A brief history

The Asia Cup which was started in 1984 as a way to promote goodwill among Asian countries, has now grown into an important biennial event that generally acts as a precursor to ODI and T20I World Cups. The last edition, played across August-September 2022 in U.A.E., was competed in the T20 format to help prepare teams for the upcoming T20 World Cup. It was won by Sri Lanka.

The 16th edition of the Asia Cup, which is scheduled to be held between September 2-September 17, 2023, is supposed to act as a preparatory event for Asian teams ahead of the ODI World Cup that will follow in October-November. It will be played in the 50-over format.

Asia Cup 2023 venue: Pakistan, UAE, Sri Lanka or elsewhere?

There’s been a lot of chat around the venue for this edition of the Asia Cup. Pakistan are supposed to be the original hosts of the tournament. However, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said in October 2022 that India wouldn’t travel to Pakistan owing to political tensions between the two countries leading to uncertainty around the scheduling of the event.

PCB head Najam Sethi proposed a hybrid model where India would play their matches at a neutral venue like the United Arab Emirates, while the rest of the matches would have been played in Pakistan. However, that proposal seems to have been rejected as the boards are not too keen to play ODIs in the Gulf in September when conditions are extreme in terms of heat.

The latest reports suggest that the tournament might be entirely shifted to a different location, with Sri Lanka being the front-runners to host it.

According to the latest reports on June 6 2023, three countries – Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan – have rejected playing the Asia Cup in the hybrid model, where they would have had to travel between countries to play Pakistan and India. Following the reports, it is rumoured that the PCB may pull out of the tournament entirely if a part of the Asia Cup is not held in the country.

Reports also suggest that the Asia Cup might be cancelled as well if no India-Pakistan matches are expected to take place, with PCB keen to host the marquee clash in Pakistan.

The latest reports (June 10, 2023) suggest that the hybrid model that PCB proposed is going to be approved in all likelihood by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC). According to the model, Sri Lanka will be the neutral venue where India’s matches will be played, while up to four or five of the total matches of the tournament will be played in Lahore, Pakistan.

What’s the format for Asia Cup 2023?

Six teams are supposed to participate in this edition of the Asia Cup – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Nepal. Nepal have qualified for the Aisa Cup following their victory in the ACC Men’s Premier Cup where they defeated U.A.E. by seven wickets in the final. The other five teams have gained automatic entry by virtue of being Full Member nations.

How many teams will participate?

The six teams are divided into two groups of three each. Each team will play each other once in the first round, with the top two teams from each group qualifying through to the Super Fours, where they will play each other once. The top two teams will then contest the final, leading to a total of 13 matches.

When will the Asia Cup schedule be out?

The schedule for the Asia Cup is not out yet, however, according to ESPN Cricinfo, a window between September 1-September 17 has been set aside for the tournament.

What are the implications of the Asia Cup on the 2023 World Cup?

Pakistan have expressed that if the Asia Cup is moved out of Pakistan for any reason, they would boycott the tournament. That then puts their participation in the ODI World Cup which is scheduled to take place in India later this year, in doubt as well.